Fetch reputation data for registered numbers

Once a business and its phone numbers have been registered with Hiya, this service can be used to watch for any potential labeling of calls as spam or fraud. Understanding number reputation status is a critical first step to call success.

Step 1: Check reputation of any phone numbers

For any verified registered phone number, the Get reputation status API call is available to check if one or more phone numbers are having calls labeled as spam. The spam labeling status is provided as one of four possible values:

• 'flagged' (phone calls are likely being labeled as spam for many recipients)
• 'mixed_high' (phone calls are likely being labeled as spam for some recipients, or have been labeled often in recent calls)
• 'mixed_low' (phone calls are not likely labeled as spam, but they have been labeled in the past)
• 'unflagged' (phone calls from this number are not labeled as spam)

Note: Spam labeling is dynamic for every phone call, not a static property of a phone number. Every call is analyzed based on historical and real-time data. Therefore, not every call from a phone number may have the same label, and the flag status is not a guarantee of future call labeling.

The spam labeling status is updated using a combination of real-time status information, as well as information updated hourly.

Step 2: Review the number reputation report card

The Get reputation status API call also includes several grades meant to assist the calling enterprise in understanding if their calls appear to be valuable to the recipients receiving them. If a number is being labeled as spam, this can help illuminate factors that could be contributing to a spam label. With this information, businesses that have calls labeled as spam can explore their own calling policies and explore possible actions to improve their relationship with their recipients.

In total, four key number reputation grades are provided as part of a reputation report card: Maturity, Connection, Engagement, and Sentiment. Each grade reflects the phone number’s standing in that area, as an enum “good”, “normal”, “poor”, and “very_poor”. If a phone number has grades that are “poor” or “very_poor”, this could reflect an issue in calling behavior that’s causing bad engagement with recipients, which might then lead to a label as spam.

The number reputation report card is updated hourly.

Maturity

What it means: Maturity is a reflection of whether a phone number is well established. A number is considered “mature” either if it creates a higher volume of calls, or if it’s seen creating calls over multiple days/weeks (even at very low volumes).

How to use it: Phone numbers with little to no calling history can be a red flag for spam analytics systems, as it can indicate that the business is attempting to evade spam labeling by changing phone numbers. For a phone number with a low grade in maturity, the enterprise should establish themselves by using that phone number; making even a handful of calls makes a difference.

Follow-up questions: If a business receives a poor grade, here are questions to dig deeper:

• Why hasn’t this phone number been used? Is it new?
• Was the number added to replace other numbers that were labeled as spam? If so, the underlying number reputation problem probably still needs to be addressed.

Connection

What it means: This grade, based on the reactions of call recipients to calls from this number, shows whether recipients of calls from this number tend to answer the phone when called from this number. It can indicate if the recipients are expecting or want to receive this call.

How to use it: If a phone number has a low grade for their connection quality, it could mean recipients aren’t finding the calls to be relevant to them. This can often be due to overly aggressive calling patterns such as calling too often, or continuing to call after the recipient gives an indicator they aren’t interested (like hanging up on a previous call). This is also one area where call branding can really assist - if a call is expected and wanted, it’s possible the recipient just doesn’t realize who is calling them.

Follow-up questions: If a business receives a poor grade, here are questions to dig deeper:

• What is the policy for repeat calling to the same recipient? Policies that require a recipient to explicitly request to be removed from a calling list will lead to unanswered calls and poor connection.
• For telesales, consider the integrity of any leads lists. Lists that are old or have minimal consent can lead to unexpected calls that then go unanswered.
• Do recipients likely know who’s calling? If calls have no branding, and/or are placed well after the recipient may have given consent, they may not realize who is calling or why it would be relevant to answer.

Engagement

What it means: This grade, based on the reactions of call recipients to calls from this number, reflects if recipients tend to stay on the line when they answer the call. It can be an indicator that recipients are engaging with the inbound call and having a meaningful conversation.

How to use it: Calls with a low grade in engagement may or may not indicate a problem. Some calls, like appointment reminders, will naturally have lower engagement from recipients since they aren’t meant to have a lengthy conversation. But for other types of calls, this usually is a clear indicator that recipients don’t get value from the calls (especially if you find the recipient is the one hanging up). It is a major indicator of low-quality lead lists for sales-based services.

Follow-up questions: If a business receives a poor grade, here are questions to dig deeper:

• Is there a lag before calls are connected to an agent? Recipients can be quick to hang up if there’s silence when they say “hello”.
• Is your dialing platform over-driving your call center agents? Prolonged silence or messages asking the recipient to “please wait” usually end in a hangup.
• Are your calling agents properly identifying themselves to the recipient? The recipient may already be suspicious the call will be spam and attempts at small talk can be met with “not interested” and a quick hangup.

Sentiment

What it means: This grade, based on the reactions of recipients to calls from this number, reflects if recipients appear to want any lasting association with the caller. In particular, this can be a reflection if recipients choose to block any future calls, possibly also raising a report against the caller.

How to use it: This is usually one of the strongest indicators about call quality for recipients, because this grade goes beyond calls being unexpected or inconvenient, but to being truly unwanted. Check for poor calling practices that would frustrate recipients (calling too often, calling on stale leads) and ensure that calls are reaching the right people who should get lasting value from a connection with the caller.

Follow-up questions: If a business receives a poor grade, here are questions to dig deeper:

• What is the policy for repeat calling to the same recipient? Policies that require a recipient to explicitly request to be removed from a calling list will lead to recipients reporting or blocking future calls.
• Are calls reaching recipients at appropriate times? A caller making irritating calls during dinner or early morning will quickly be blocked.

Step 3: Take action on labeled calls

Using the information provided above, a caller has several options if they find their calls are being labeled as spam:

1. Review your number reputation report card. This may provide insight into changes in calling behavior that could directly improve how recipients react and engage with the phone calls, which in turn will heavily affect the number reputation and spam labeling.

2. Consider our Best Practices guide for more advice on how to strengthen the connection between callers and recipients.

3. Request a reputation review. If after reviewing the reputation report card you still believe a spam label is incorrect, you can submit a request for reputation review. Please include context that addresses any poor grades from the reputation report card so that Hiya can understand the circumstances behind these calls. Note, Hiya may require additional information during this review.

4. Add call branding. Frequently, recipients react poorly to calls when they are unexpected and the recipient doesn’t know who’s calling. Adding branding is a great way to connect with recipients, making sure they know who’s calling and can respond appropriately.